Candidly, this piece captures the moment of emerging consciousness. A young man rests supine on a bed, his arms thrown back above his head in an attitude of surrender or perhaps stretch. The room around him is plunged into near-darkness, allowing the creamy whiteness of his skin to stand out dramatically. Teal and indigo floral fabric pools dramatically beside his head, contrasting with the warm ochre tones of his body. Above, a multi-paned window provides the only break in the deep, inky obscurity of the room. The exterior brilliance spills across the upper half of the composition, defining the crisp edge of the sheets and the pillow behind his head. This cool wash of illumination falls obliquely across the man’s features, lending a meditative cast to his half-closed eyes and relaxed jawline. He is caught perfectly between the comfort of sleep and the requirement to rise. Muscles across the torso are modeled in paint with great definition, emphasizing the powerful structure of the chest and abdomen. His skin is painted in layers of bronze and copper, highlighting the firm planes of his body against the pale, rumpled cotton of his low-cut white briefs. The lower half of his body fades into the warm darkness, anchoring this intimate moment of repose before the day begins.
